finders keepers, or so they say
by isaacswolfsbane
Summary: When Marcus dies, Oliver tries desperately to keep his life the way it was before. That all changes when he finds a man in his basement. / Muggle!au, Soulmate!au


**QLFC Round 8 – The Korean Wave;  
** Arrows, Captain: Theme - finding out your loved one/partner/family hid something major from you and left you with that something (debt/a child/a cursed object etc) and what you do about it.

* * *

 **finders keepers, or so they say**

Oliver finds himself biting back tears as he brings the final box down from the attic. He can't cry, not now. Not after spending hours convincing his mother — and trying to convince himself — that he's okay. They're only Christmas decorations, after all.

But they're not _only_.

Christmas had always been their thing. Neither of them was from a family that went out of their way to celebrate Christmas — the most either of them did growing up was exchanging presents — so when they moved in together, celebrating Christmas properly had been a top priority. And they had gone all out.

Decorations were everywhere both inside and outside the house, they threw a Christmas party every year, and Christmas Day was spent exchanging gifts, eating an abundance of food, and wearing silly hats.

The decorations were Oliver's favourite part, though. They would spend hours agonising over the perfect places to hang the garlands and the lights, picking out the perfect trees, and picking out a theme for each room. It had become a tradition. Every December 1st they would decorate the house together.

Then Marcus had died on November 28th, leaving Oliver to do it all by himself.

He knows he shouldn't force himself to do it — he should be grieving — but it's a tradition, and it would be something akin to blasphemy to let the tradition die with Marcus.

Oliver sighs. "It's not the same without you," he mutters. "Who am I going to argue with about where to put the inflatable Santa now?"

* * *

It takes a lot longer to put up decorations alone than Oliver had been expecting. They also don't look as good as usual — Marcus always had the more artistic eye. Wiping the sweat from his brow, Oliver examines his handiwork.

The theme of the living room is red and gold. Marcus had never let him use red and gold together when he was alive — he claimed they were too commonly used together, but Oliver knew it was because red and gold were the colours of Oliver's secondary school, and their two schools had been rivals — so Oliver had jumped at the opportunity to be able to do it now. The sight just makes him sad, though. The ruby garlands and gold stars don't feel like Marcus at all; all they do is make Oliver miss him.

He hasn't started on the outside of the house yet, but as he looks at the pile of boxes left in the corner, he realises the outdoor decorations aren't there. Oliver had cleared out the attic. He'd assumed the outdoor decorations would have been up there, but in hindsight, Oliver realises they're probably too heavy to carry up and down the ladder to the attic. They must be in the basement.

It isn't until Oliver's hand is on the doorknob that he realises he's never been down there. Marcus had claimed the basement as his 'creative space' and Oliver had respected that. After all, Oliver does have the shed outside that they had converted as his own haven for his sporting equipment.

He takes a deep breath to ready himself for entering his boyfriend's — well, ex-boyfriend's now, he guesses — space. Surprisingly, the knob turns and the door opens. Oliver had half expected it to be locked and for that to give him a reason not to go down there. He realises as he pulls the door open that he isn't a ready as he thought he was. But it's too late now. The door is open, and he has to go down.

* * *

Oliver moves slowly as he descends the stairs, one hand gripping tightly to the bannister, the other clutching the flickering candle he'd lit when the light switch hadn't worked. He wonders if he should wait until morning — he's pretty sure there's a window that would provide some light — but he's come this far and he's determined not to give up.

It's darker than he expects when he finally reaches the bottom of the stairs. Even with the candle, he can barely see two inches in front of him. He wishes he knew where the torch was kept, but Oliver has a feeling Marcus had kept it down here, making it almost impossible to find.

He treads carefully, moving around the room slowly so that he doesn't lose his bearings. When he spots a dark shape that looks like a pile of boxes in one corner, he picks up his pace and goes flying as he trips over something.

As Oliver lands, there's a hiss of pain. It takes him a second to realise that it didn't come from him.

Oliver's heart begins to race. Thankfully, the candle didn't go out when he fell, and Oliver picks it back up to examine whatever it was that he tripped over.

He edges closer, the candle flickering as the tiny circle of light exposes a foot.

"What the fuck?"

The words are out of Oliver's mouth before he even realises he's speaking.

He gulps in an attempt to calm himself down before moving the candle again.

Foot.

Leg.

Knee.

Thigh.

Torso.

Shoulders.

Face.

Oliver breathes a sigh of relief that the body is intact. Then, the man opens his eyes and Oliver almost jumps out of his skin.

"What are you doing in my basement?" Oliver asks. "I'll call the police!"

He knows the threat sounds weak, but he can't think of what else to say. All Oliver wants to know is why there is a man he's never seen before in his basement.

It takes a minute, but when the man speaks his voice is croaky and dry from lack of use.

"Water," he says. "Please, I need some water."

Oliver is taken aback for a second. It's only then that he notices the handcuffs chaining the man's arms above his head.

"You didn't break in?"

The realisation comes out as a question, and the man looks at him to say, "Well, duh".

Oliver isn't sure what to do. How is he supposed to help this man when he doesn't have the key to the handcuffs? He stands and quickly scours the room for something, anything that could help him get the handcuffs off.

"What's your name?" Oliver asks as he searches.

"Fred," the man croaks. He really doesn't sound like he's in good shape.

"Well, I'm sure I'll be able to release you from those handcuffs in no time." Oliver pauses before adding, "Why are you in my basement?"

Fred doesn't answer, so Oliver keeps talking.

"Whatever it is, I'm sure it's a good reason. Was it voluntary? Stupid question, Oliver, of course, it wasn't — he was chained up."

"Are you always this annoying?"

"Sorry," Oliver says. "I was just trying to make conversation." Oliver can't help but smile, though; he got the man — Fred — to talk.

Eventually, tucked away in a corner, he finds a pair of wire cutters.

It's a struggle, especially as he's trying to hold the candle up at the same time, but eventually, he cuts through the chain of the handcuffs and Fred's arms fall down to his sides. Oliver drops the wire cutters and puts an arm around Fred's waist to help him up.

Suddenly the world goes black.

* * *

 _Oliver watches as Fred and someone who must be his twin brother laugh about something Oliver was too late to see. They look happy. Oliver just watches them for a minute before realising what this means — they're soulmates._

 _As Fred and his twin laugh, Oliver hopes that this is Fred's best day that he's reliving. He doesn't know how he'd cope with the worst._

 _Marcus rounds a corner, and Oliver feels his stomach sink. He doesn't know why Marcus would be here unless it was related to Fred being in the basement, and judging by the state Fred was in, that can't have been a good thing._

" _Which one of you is Fred?" Marcus asks, his icy tone cutting through the laughter._

" _Who's asking?" the twin says — Oliver can tell because Fred shines a little brighter since it's his memory._

" _Me, obviously. Which one of you is it?"_

 _Oliver gulps. He knows Marcus was argumentative, but he'd never seen his boyfriend get this angry before, and seemingly for no reason._

 _Fred rolls his eyes. "Look, I don't know what you want with me, but—"_

 _His words are cut off by Marcus punching him in the face. Fred goes flying backwards, his hand covering his face which was leaking blood. Seconds later, his twin is wrestling with Marcus. Kicks and punches are flying. Fred tries to get involved, to back up his twin, but every time he's sent flying backwards. Oliver can hardly watch as Marcus locks his arm around the twin's throat and squeezes until he stops breathing._

 _All the fight seems to leave Fred as the life leaves his twin's body. They simultaneously fall to the floor. Fred in shock and exhaustion, his twin in death._

 _Oliver expects the memory to end there, but it doesn't. Marcus is on his feet again and is roughly dragging Fred along the floor. Oliver tries to reach out, to help Fred as much as he can, but he's stuck as an onlooker._

 _Marcus throws Fred roughly into the back of a van and then they're driving for what feels like hours, but Oliver knows is only a few minutes. Then they pull up outside Oliver's own house. He can see himself in the upstairs window, and Oliver wants to kick himself — Marcus had brought Fred into the house while he was there, and Oliver hadn't known a thing._

 _When Fred is chained up in the basement, he finally manages to find his voice again._

" _Why?" he asks._

 _Marcus laughs. "I have friends in high up places. They have a list of everybody in the UK and their potential soulmates. You're the only one listed under Oliver's name, and I couldn't chance you ruining what we have."_

" _You're sick," Fred says._

 _He tries to spit in Marcus' face, but Marcus is too far away. Not for long, though. When Fred's attempt fails, Marcus crosses the distance between them and punches Fred for the second time that day. This time, Fred passes out and Oliver is pulled from the memory._

* * *

"I'm so sorry," Oliver says when he's back in the present. He wants to help more than ever now, he just hopes Fred will let him.

Fred doesn't respond as Oliver leads him upstairs and puts him into a chair at the kitchen table. He busies himself fetching water and making toast so that Fred has something to eat and drink. It isn't enough, but it's all Oliver can do right now.

"Do you have somewhere to go?" Oliver asks. "Any family you can contact? You're welcome to stay here if you don't. Or, I could take you to a hospital if you'd prefer. You probably ne—"

"Please, stop talking," Fred says. "I… thank you for coming to rescue me, but… I can't be here. I can't look at you. I never want to see you again."

Oliver is stunned. He had assumed Fred would be upset since he had been kept in Oliver's basement, but Oliver hadn't known about it. Why was he being treated as though he had?

"Can I use your phone?" Fred asks after a minute.

Oliver silently fetches the phone and passes it to Fred. He debates staying in the room but decides on giving Fred some space. Before he leaves the room, he gives Fred his address.

When Oliver next enters the kitchen, Fred is gone.

* * *

It takes him almost three weeks to track Fred down, but Oliver manages it. He doesn't want to find Fred to speak to him — Fred had been pretty clear on his feelings — but Oliver needs to know if he's okay.

He is. Well, he looks it, at least. Fred is sitting in the square outside the coffee shop Oliver is in and chatting with a friend. He doesn't look as healthy as he did in the memory Oliver saw, but he certainly looks better than when Oliver had found him.

It occurs to Oliver then that he doesn't know what memory Fred had seen of his. If they really were soulmates, and all signs pointed to that being the case, then Fred had to have seen one of Oliver's memories too. He shakes the thought from his head, though — it's not like he'll ever have the opportunity to ask Fred.

When Fred and his friend leave the square, Oliver does too. He heads back to the quiet, empty house that he shared with Marcus. It used to be his dream house. Now, he hates every inch of it. Yes, it held some of Oliver's favourite memories — Christmas with Marcus, birthdays, finding out he had been chosen to play for the local football team. But it also held some of Oliver's worst memories — the day Marcus found out he was sick, the slow deterioration, and now, finding out Marcus had kept Fred locked up in his basement for almost a year.

It isn't a place Oliver wants to live anymore, but he doesn't know where to begin with finding a place on his own.

Instead, Oliver spends his time checking up on Fred. He needs to know the man he rescued is safe. He finds Fred's most frequented spots and waits there. Sometime he'll read a book, sometime he'll hide in a coffee shop nearby. Never does he approach Fred. He can't.

When Fred doesn't show up, Oliver does start looking for a new place. He calls his mother and asks for her help. He meets up with an old friend from school and asks if she wants to be his roommate.

But Fred is always at the forefront of his mind. He'll always be at the forefront of his mind.

* * *

Oliver is packing up the last few boxes, getting ready to say goodbye to the house he resents so much, when the doorbell rings. He checks his watch — twenty past five. Penny's early, as always.

He rolls his eyes and opens the door.

Then he freezes.

Standing in his doorway, face slightly pink, is Fred.

"Hi," Fred says.

"Hi," Oliver replies. He can't think of anything else to say.

"I'm sorry," Fred says, and Oliver is taken aback. "Last year when you found me… I— Are you busy?" Fred's eyes focus on the boxes behind Oliver. "I've come at a bad time. I'll just leave."

"No. Not at all. Come in, please. Have a cup of tea; I haven't packed the kettle yet."

Oliver opens the door wider and Fred cautiously steps inside.

"When you found me," Fred starts when they're both sat in the kitchen, "I was a mess. I blamed you for what had happened to me, but I know now that you are not to blame. I've felt awful about what happened and, well, I had to come and apologise."

Fred finishes speaking, and Oliver just sits there in silence. He doesn't know how to take this all in. He doesn't know what this means.

"Plus," Fred says after a while. "I've noticed you checking me out every time I'm in town."

He winks. There's a brief second where they're both silent, and then they simultaneously start laughing.

Oliver may not know what's going on, and their last meeting may have been disastrous, but sitting across the table from Fred feels easy. And, well, if he's here, that has to mean something, right?

* * *

 **Word Count:** 2,614.

* * *

 **This is for:**

 _ **Hogwarts;  
Insane House;**_ _671\. (dialogue) "It's not the same without you."  
_ _ **365 Prompts;**_ _207\. (plot point) a character finds something  
_ _ **Seasonal - Gryffindor Themed Prompts;**_ _(character) Fred Weasley  
_ _ **Seasonal - Astrology;**_ _(word) rescue  
_ _ **WC - Character Appreciation;**_ _7\. (era) trio  
_ _ **WC - Dark Lady's Diabolical Lair;**_ _19\. Write about a horrific discovery  
_ _ **WC - Book Club;**_ _The Queen - (word) release, (dialogue) "You are not to blame.", (plot point) being trapped  
_ _ **WC - Showtime;**_ _(emotion) frightened  
_ _ **WC - Count Your Buttons;**_ _A1 - Soulmate!au, W1 - Disastrous  
_ _ **Slash September;**_ _Oliver  
_ _ **Pinata;**_ _(easy) Soulmate!au, (word count) 2,613  
_ _ **Sewing 101;**_ _(object) candle, (word) pain, (colour) gold  
 **Love in Motion;** Fred/Oliver  
_ _ **Romance Awareness;**_ _Day 17 - The first time you touch your soulmate you're forced to relive the best and/or worst day of their life  
_ _ **Auction;**_ _(dialogue) "Sorry, I was just trying to make conversation."_


End file.
